China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) was tipped to be on the brink of issuing commercial 5G licences, clearing operators to begin deploying services, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The agency quoted MIIT as stating China is ready for a commercial 5G launch, with overseas enterprises including Nokia, Ericsson and Qualcomm deeply involved in the development of the technology.
China’s government granted licences to the country’s three major operators to conduct 5G trials in 2018, however a commercial launch is yet to be approved.
An exact launch date was not announced, but it is expected soon.
MIIT reportedly said China owns “more than 30 per cent of standard essential patents for the technology”, built through a combination of independent innovation and open cooperation on 5G standards.
Launches are expected to provide a major boost to the country’s economy and its technology sector. They would be timely as the country’s major vendors Huawei and ZTE face scrutiny from the US over security.
Ernst & Young predicted China’s three major operators will spend almost $5 billion on 5G-related infrastructure in 2019 alone, with their total spend estimated to hit $217 billion between 2020 and 2025.
While China’s operators were widely expected to deploy commercial 5G services in 2020, launches in the US, South Korea and parts of Europe, including the UK, appear to have spurred regulators to accelerate the schedule.
The Institute of Electronic and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a US-based research and standards group, lifted a temporary ban on Huawei and its subsidiaries from participating in a peer review process for its research papers.
Its U-turn follows a statement last week that it would bar Huawei employees from taking part in the process and prohibit them from being involved in closed events involving technical discussions.
At the time, the IEEE explained its decision was the consequence of the US government placing Huawei on a trade blacklist last month.
IEEE said it decided to lift the ban following further clarification from the US Department of Commerce “on the applicability of these export control restrictions to IEEE’s publication activities”.
“Based on this new information, employees of Huawei and its affiliates may participate as peer reviewers and editors in our publication process. All IEEE members, regardless of employer, can continue to participate in all of the activities of the IEEE,” it said.
The association continued to state the risk had been addressed and its initial decision to bar the Chinese vendor was “motivated solely by our desire to protect our volunteers and our members from legal risk”.
Huawei is now free to submit papers, attend conferences and participate in other public activities.
Backtrack
The SD Association, an industry group covering standards for memory cards, had also reportedly blocked Huawei from participating in its technical meetings, but in a statement explained the vendor’s name had been omitted from its list of members “due to a technical issue”.
However, the association also noted Huawei’s membership “was recently suspended to ensure compliance” with the US export ban, before explaining most handset makers don’t need to be members of the group “to manufacture products using SD technology” unless they require access to the group’s specifications or branding.
The Wi-Fi Alliance also stated it had blocked Huawei, though the vendor appears to have subsequently been reinstated to the group’s list of members.
The Financial Times reported Friday that tech giant Huawei has ordered its employees to cancel technical meetings with American contacts and has sent home numerous U.S. employees working at its Chinese headquarters.
The moves come amid growing U.S.-China tensions over trade and technology in which Huawei has been a main target.
The newspaper quoted Huawei’s chief strategy architect, Dang Wenshuan, as saying that American citizens working in R&D were repatriated two weeks ago, after the Chinese group and 68 affiliates were placed on the U.S. Commerce Department’s “Entity List,” which effectively bars American firms from selling technology to Huawei without government approval.
The FT said a workshop underway at Huawei at the time was “hastily disbanded, and American delegates were asked to remove their laptops, isolate their networks and leave the Huawei premises.”
It quoted Dang as saying that Huawei is also limiting interactions between its employees and American citizens.
Huawei declined to comment on the FT report.
China’s commerce ministry announced Friday that it will establish its own list of foreign enterprises, organizations and individuals it deems to be “unreliable entities” – a possible response to the U.S. blacklist.
Entities are “unreliable” if they “fail to comply with market rules, break from the spirit of contracts and block or stop supplying Chinese enterprise for non-commercial reasons, seriously damaging the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises,” ministry spokesman Gao Feng said at a news briefing.
Gao said the specific measures to be taken against the entities will be announced at a later date.
The purpose of the list is to oppose unilateralism and trade protectionism, as well as safeguard China’s national security, he said.
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) was reportedly gearing up for an antitrust investigation of Google, creating fresh regulatory scrutiny for the search giant.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said the move comes following DoJ talks with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), with which it shares antitrust authority. The FTC has previously probed Google, but not taken any significant action against the company.
In contrast, European regulators have taken action against Google related to search, advertising and its Android activities. While the scope of any DoJ investigation was not revealed, search and advertising will obviously feature, as could Google’s practices related to the Android platform.
WSJ said while it was not clear if Google had already been contacted, “third-party critics” of the company had been in touch with the authorities.
It was noted a DoJ probe comes as attitudes toward the major internet players shift, with concern about the influence they hold and their ability to sway both markets and individuals. US presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren has gone as far as to call for big tech companies to be broken up and, while others have stopped short of this, additional scrutiny may well be welcomed.
Google will, of course, not be an easy target for investigators. While it has undoubtedly achieved a scale that means its actions have a significant impact on competition, it can point to rivals in many key sectors and the ecosystem which has grown up around Android.
It also has a fair set of experience in dealing with regulators worldwide following earlier probes and investigations in other geographies: WSJ noted it has also built up a support network in Washington and across the wider US political landscape, despite vocal criticism from some.
MTN Ghana has paid a courtesy call on his eminence Sheikh Dr. Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu at his Fadama residence today Saturday with a donation of Gh¢30,000.
In addition to the cash, MTN Ghana also presented some items including 10 bags of rice, 20 cartons of soft drinks, 5 cartons of vegetable oil, 30 cartons of mineral water, GH¢500 worth of airtime, and 2 Rams to the Sheikh Dr. Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu.
The donations are meant to support his Trust Fund and the celebration of the Eidul Fitr.
The holy month which began on May 6 is expected to end on the evening of June 5, 2019. Throughout the period, Muslims have undertaken dawn-dusk fasting which primarily entails abstinence from food, drink, marital intimacy and any such prohibitions as instructed by Allah.
According to MTN Ghana representative that paid the courtesy call on the Islamic leader, they have been compelled to take the step to honour Sheikh Dr. Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu on his centenary birthday which he celebrated recently.
And also to support the Eidul Fitr celebration and donate to his Trust Fund to help promote education.
Speaking at the short ceremony, the General Manager of Distributive Trade, Abubakar Mohammed explained that for the past 12 years, they have consistently supported the Chief Imam during Eidul Fitr celebrations by way of donations and organizing key events in Nima and Accra New Town, all in an effort to foster peaceful coexistent in the communities.
“MTN has also been supporting the National Hajj Board annually in the organization of the pilgrimage to Mecca for the past 6 years,” Mr Mohammed stated.
He continued, “It is in view of this strong bond with you, that the management of MTN Ghana initiated the Quaranic Recitation today in honour of his eminence, Sheikh Dr. Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu’s 100th birthday.
“Also as part of the centenary celebration of your birthday, we are happy to present a cheque of GH¢30,000 to support the Chief Imam’s Educational Fund to aid your quest to promote education in Ghana”.
The Chief Imam speaking through his spokesperson, Sheikh Armiyawo Shaibu thanked and prayed for Allah’s blessing for the MTN Ghana for the kind gesture.
Accra, May 31, GNA – MTN Ghana on Thursday launched its new wireless broadband internet device called the “TurboNet” to offer customers more affordable, wide and faster internet services.
The TurboNet designed to be used at different settings especially at homes and offices could be accessed by up to 32 users at a time.
Mr Selorm Adadevoh, the Chief Executive Officer of MTN Ghana at the launch, said people wanted to access high speed data in their homes, offices, shops even if they did not have access to fixed broadband connectivity, therefore, ensuring that they met the customers at the point of need was paramount to them.
He said a World Bank report had indicated that an increase in broadband penetration increases GDP per capita growth.
“In view of this, we are excited to introduce onto the market the MTN TurboNet, which is a high speed 4G internet router providing a Fixed Wireless Broadband Service,” he said.
Mr Adadevoh noted that MTN had earmarked an amount of 160 million dollars for network improvements which was still ongoing.
Mr George Andah, the Deputy Minister of Communications, said in the 21st century, broadband had become a critical infrastructure prerequisite as ICT had a considerable impact in the creation of the information society.
Broadband adoption, he explained, was serving as a foundation for economic growth, job creation, global competitiveness and a better way of life.
He noted that usage of such internet services would propel Ghana’s participation in the forth industrial revolution considering the significant impact and opportunities that would be unleashed as government worked towards building a digital economy to establish Ghana as a leader in ICT innovations in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2023.
Mr Andah disclosed that government would be making available spectrum within the 800 megahertz band realised from the migration from analogue to digital terrestrial television to promote the deployment of 4G services to enhance the quality of experience in the provision of data services by the telecom sector.
“We are of the firm belief that the mobile network operators will take advantage of this opportunity to provide high capacity and faster data services in Ghana for all,” he said.
The Deputy Minister said the introduction of the service by MTN would support government’s effort in bridging the digital wide gap for citizens to access digital initiatives of government.
The digital initiatives are the e-payment, generation of digital address, e-procurement, e-justice, e-immigration, e-parliament, and e-passport systems, Mr Andah noted.
He advised the citizenry to protect the investments made by government and the private sector to provide better services for all.
“If we continue to damage and vandalise fibre optic cables, which are belayed, we will be facing severe service interruptions and the experience we are championing might be useless. These damaged cables are repaired at high cost by operators not to talk of the inconvenience consumers and enterprises face in the destructions,” he said.
“I will like to remind MTN of the concern of service quality, availability, reliability, speed and affordability of service when it comes to the delivery of broadband services…,” Mr Andah said.
MTN is to sell its stakes in investment fund Amadeus and online platform Travelstart, in line with its plan to raise ZAR15 billion ($1 billion) through asset sales over the next three years.
The company, which is holding a Capital Markets Day with investors today (28 May), said it would sell its interests in both companies to global private equity firm HarbourVest for a total of ZAR1.2 billion, BusinessDay reported.
The deals are expected to close in three months, and aside from raising funds, MTN said the move helps it to simplify its portfolio and reduce risk.
In March 2019, the operator group announced intentions to sell ZAR15 billion worth of assets in the period to 2022, following a wider strategic review that will also see it launch a barrage of new services across its markets.
MoMo market place
To that end, the company also revealed plans to build a new app which will allow customers to buy a number of different products and services, such as insurance and washing machines, through its mobile money platform MoMo.
Reuters reported that MTN wants to enable payments to merchants and companies through MoMo, and then expand this by selling third party and MTN’s products through the new app, dubbed “Market Place”.
As part of its ambitions to diversify from traditional telecoms services, MTN has branched out in recent years to music streaming, messaging and fintech.
MTN’s announcements followed news that the company is facing a probe in Nigeria following its listing in the country.
Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission requested additional information and documentation, after MTN held its long-awaited listing on 16 May.
MTN said it had secured all necessary regulatory approval to trade its stock and had not been accused of wrongdoing.
However, Bloomberg reported its head office in Nigeria was raided by the financial crimes agency, in connection with the investigation.
MTN has faced a number of issues with regulators in Nigeria, its biggest market, over the years.
AT&T claimed to be the first major US operator to allow its customers to pay their phone bill using cryptocurrency, after inking a deal with BitPay to process the transactions.
Through BitPay, AT&T will be able to accept Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash from customers making payments online or through the myAT&T app. BitPay will handle the actual transaction, displaying customer invoices in cryptocurrency dollars, accepting payment and converting the funds into traditional currency for the operator.
An AT&T representative told Mobile World Live it anticipates “a small percentage” of its customers will choose to use the new feature.
A survey conducted in April by investment company Blockchain Capital determined around 9 per cent of the US population owns Bitcoin, with the highest levels of reported ownership among 18-to-34 year-olds (18 per cent) and 34-to-44 year-olds (12 per cent).
Kevin McDorman, AT&T VP of Finance Business Operations, said in a statement the move is part of the operator’s ongoing effort to “improve and expand our services”.
“We have customers who use cryptocurrency, and we are happy we can offer them a way to pay their bills with the method they prefer.”
American Tower inked a deal to acquire Eaton Towers, which owns and operates around 5,500 sites across five African markets, in a $1.85 billion deal.
The US company already has a global portfolio of more than 170,000 sites, including around 41,000 in its home market and 130,000 worldwide. In Africa, it has a presence in Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Ghana and South Africa.
Eaton Towers said it is the only infrastructure company in Niger and Burkina Faso. It also claims to be the largest player (by number of towers) in Kenya and second-largest in Uganda and Ghana, meaning there is significant regional overlap with the American Tower portfolio.
Jim Taiclet, American Tower CEO, said: “This transaction will significantly augment our existing footprint in Africa and positions ATC to take even better advantage of the growth opportunity in the region as 4G mobile data technology is deployed to serve millions of Africans over the coming years.”
The acquired assets are expected to generate around $260 million in property revenue and around $165 million in gross revenue, at current exchange rates, in their first full year in the American Tower portfolio.
Early days
Christian Skaanild, director representing Eaton Towers’ majority shareholder Capital Group Private Markets, said: “We are proud of what has been achieved since we made our first investment in Eaton Towers in 2011, when the African telecom towers industry was at a very nascent stage. Since then our investment has contributed to improved coverage and capacity delivering voice and data access for consumers.”
Financial Times reported Eaton Towers was due to list in 2018, but pulled its IPO. It was noted that this may have brought forward bidders for an acquisition.
Another African towers business, Helios Towers, also pulled plans for a float in 2018. Also active in the region is IHS Towers.
The deal sees American Tower taking on existing Eaton Towers debt, which is included in the $1.85 billion figure. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2019, subject to closing conditions and regulatory approval.
Vietnam’s communications ministry hosted a workshop outlining international success stories in the mobile money sector, in a move to promote the benefits ahead of proposed trial deployments.
During the two day event, the country’s minister of information and communication Nguyen Manh Hung said adoption of a mobile-based payment system would help people in mountainous and other remote regions access a range of banking and online services.
The politician pointed to the abilities of mobile money to not only increase financial inclusion, but expand access to services in the health, education, employment services and social welfare.
The ministry’s event, in Hanoi, brought organisations from countries with experience in the sector to share experiences.
According to Vietnam government statistics, 60 per cent of the country’s 95 million citizens do not have access to a formal bank account, with the majority of those that have concentrated in urban areas.
Last month state media in the country revealed MobiFone, Viettel and Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group were preparing to launch pilots of mobile money services.
